Favorite Granola

Every morning my husband gets up and makes himself a fried egg. Choking back my gagging at the smell of eggs, cumin and whatever other random spices he threw on there, I pour myself a bowl of granola, and we sit down for breakfast. Because he’s a nice guy, he usually offers me a bite, which I turn down every. single. time. But he keeps offering.

This morning he told me, “This is the best egg in the history of eggs. If there were ever an egg you should take a bite of, it should be this one.”

Once again, I turned him down. (I let him down nicely by saying “Why do you always offer it to me! I never take it and that smell makes me want to PUKE!” Because I’m nice like that.)

So I’m always on a quest for the perfect granola: full of healthy things, but not so full of unhealthy things that its horrible for you, but also SOME unhealthy things (i.e. BUTTER) to make it taste good.

Here’s my latest favorite version, adapted from this recipe on epicurious. I apologize for the bad pictures. Somehow all of our cameras keep breaking, so all I had was the iPhone.

The Cast:

Mostly Aldi brand products. That honey was a gift from a friend in Lebanon. Lebanese bees made it!

Melt your butter in the microwave.

Toast nuts in the oven. Remove and let cool.

Sprinkle oats on a foil lined baking sheet. (I know, I hear my mom’s voice in my head whenever I do this (“Don’t waste the foil!”), but trust me, it will make it so much easier when it comes to getting the granola off that sheet later.)

And then, cinnamon. As much as you like. Not only is it tasty, it also has antioxidant properties.

Now, mound it all in the center, and pour in your honey/butter/salt mixture.

Mix, mix, mix.

Bake. Meanwhile, chop your nuts.

When the granola is done, let it cool for a few minutes before sprinkling the nuts and cranberries on top.

Add milk, and enjoy.

Kim’s Favorite Granola

Ingredients:

3/4 cups pecans or walnuts

1/2 cup natural almonds

4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

2 or 3 Tbl. wheat germ

2 Tbl. cinnamon

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter

1/3 cup honey

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

3/4 cup chopped

Prep:

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a large shallow baking sheet with foil. Spread the pecans and almonds on the sheet and roast for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly toasted. Transfer the nuts to a board. Set aside to cool.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300°F. Pour the oats, bran flakes , cinnamon and wheat germ in a mound on the same baking sheet. Melt the butter in a small bowl in the microwave; stir in the honey and salt and drizzle on top of the oats. [note: It seems like my salt all sank to the bottom and didn’t get on the oats. I might try salted butter next time and omit the 1/4 t. salt.] Stir well with a rubber spatula and then spread out the oats in an even layer.

Bake the oats for 30 minutes, stirring once with the spatula halfway through, until the oats are lightly colored. Let cool; the mixture will crisp as it cools. Add the cranberries and reserved nuts and toss.